Current Status of Nonviral Vectors for Gene Therapy in China

With the growing interest in application of nonviral vectors for drug delivery, diagnosis, and imaging, progress has been made in the field of nonviral vector gene therapy in China. Nanobiotechnology studies are important to the development plan for China's research priorities in the 21st century; the National 973 Plan and "Strategic Priority Research Program" classify nanobiotechnology as a special project and give priority to supporting its development. From 2000 to 2017, many articles on nonviral vector gene therapy were published, and cancer gene therapy is one of the most active and important gene therapy research fields. Although the use of nonviral vectors for gene therapy faces enormous problems, Chinese scientists have also begun to realize both the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. However, a nonviral gene therapy drug has yet to be approved for sale. Therefore, more work is needed in this field. The present review examines the progress and challenges of nonviral gene therapy in China. Efforts to optimize nonviral vectors with structural modifications and gene delivery systems are described, and clinical translation challenges are highlighted.